First investor to take legal action against Enron for massive accounting fraud, eventually recovering billions in losses for investors.

2004

Recovering Pay

Pioneered shareholder resolutions requiring companies to have clawback policies in order to recover ill-gotten executive pay.

2005

Stock Option Backdating

Aggressively took legal and other actions to challenge widespread stock option backdating in the marketplace.

2011

Environmental Safety

Spearheaded initiative to urge oil companies to integrate environmental and safety performance as a condition for executives to be paid bonuses.

2012

Shareholder Democracy

Expanded shareholder democracy by persuading the first major corporation, Hewlett-Packard, to include shareholder nominated Board candidates in its proxy.

2013

Record Settlement

Achieved largest ever $139 million settlement of derivative lawsuit alleging failed board oversight in the wake of hacking scandal at News Corporation.

2013

Restricted Windfall Activity

LongView Funds led institutional investors to curtail golden parachutes by restricting equity windfalls to executives regardless of their job.

2014

McKesson Changes Clawback Policy

McKesson (NYSE:MCK) announced updates to its clawback policy (a provision by which the company can recoup executive compensation in the wake of certain employee misconduct or financial restatements), among additional governance changes in response to a shareholder resolution sponsored by Amalgamated Bank’s LongView Funds and the UAW Retiree Medical Benefits Trust. The resolution urged the company to strengthen its clawback policy and to disclose to investors when the company applies the clawback.

2014

Class Action Lawsuit

In the wake of a 2013 security breach at Target that compromised the confidential financial and personal data of as many as 110 million consumers, Amalgamated filed a class action lawsuit against Target on behalf of banks whose customers were affected by the breach. The case alleged that Target improperly retained and failed to adequately protect sensitive financial and personal consumer data—as required by law.

2014

First Majority Vote to Link Equity Awards to Performance

Valero Energy Corp. investors passed a shareholder resolution to limit windfall golden parachutes for executives upon a change-in-control of the company, a rare majority vote in support of tightening executive compensation standards. The resolution, sponsored by Amalgamated Bank's LongView Funds, sought to prohibit Valero from disregarding performance requirements on equity awards and ensure that any equity payouts be linked to an executive’s actual performance.

2015

Settlement Results in Special Dividend Payment to Shareholders

Amalgamated Bank achieved a $137.5 million settlement in a derivative suit on behalf of shareholders of Freeport-McMoRan Inc., the Arizona-based metals and mining corporation formerly known as Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold, Inc. Using an innovative structure, the settlement paid back shareholders for value lost when Freeport’s stock value fell after the company acquired two other firms. Shareholders received the net settlement fund in the form of a special dividend.

2015

Amalgamated Bank Urges Elected Officials to Defend Investor Rights

Amalgamated Bank submitted a letter to Delaware Governor Jack Markell, Senate Pro Tempore Patricia Blevins, and House Speaker Peter Schwartzkopf urging them to enact legislative reforms to prevent corporations from unilaterally adopting new rules that would create unprecedented new barriers to shareholder lawsuits.

2015

$146.25 Million Securities Class Action Settlement

Amalgamated Bank achieved a record-breaking $146.25 million settlement on behalf of shareholders in a lawsuit against Duke Energy Corporation, the largest electric power holding company in the United States. Amalgamated filed suit after shareholders lost millions when the Duke board reneged on promises to investors by making a surprise switch in leadership hours after a key merger with Progress Energy Inc. This was the largest securities fraud settlement in North Carolina history and one of the 100 largest securities actions of the past 30 years.

2015

Agreements Struck to Limit Golden Parachute Payments

Five major energy companies agreed to new measures to limit potential golden parachutes for executives in the event of a merger or other change of company control.

2016

Amid Health Concerns, Calls to Improve Management of Chipotle

Following a food safety crisis and managerial missteps, Amalgamated Bank filed a proposal calling for Chipotle to install a new independent Chair to the Board of Directors to enhance corporate governance and public transparency.

2017

Shareholder Actions Urge Carbon Neutral Corporate Operations

As part of continued push for corporate environmental responsibility, PayPal shareholders voted on Amalgamated Bank resolution ro study feasibility of achieving net-zero emissions by 2030.

2018

First in Industry to Redefine Diversity in Leadership

Amalgamated became the first non-governmental institutional investor to expand the definition of corporate board diversity to include LGBTQ individuals by adopting new language in its proxy and investment guidelines to explicitly expand the definition of board diversity to include LGBTQ directors.

How we’re different

The U.S. federal government has announced its intention to pull the United States out of the Paris Climate Agreement. Bad idea, sure, but maybe not the monumental setback in the fight against climate change that is feared by so many.

This afternoon I sent the following message to the Amalgamated Bank community: The events of this past weekend in Charlottesville have at the same time saddened and angered us. They have forced many Americans to once again reflect on the issues that continue to divide us as a nation.